national government
the federalist
When the Constitution was written there were two groups of thought about running a government. There were the Federalist and the anti Federalist. Just as the names suggest the Federalist wanted a strong central government while the anti Federalist wanted a weaker central government and more power for states rights.
The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite.
A federalist pamphleteer
The federalist party supports federal government involvement and help.
national government
Anti-Federalist
Determining whether a federalist government is conservative or radical depends entirely upon the nature of the government in question and the standards used in the determination. For example, the federalist government of the United States in 1783 was radical (because innovative) by the standards of most members of British Parliament, while it was seen as generally conservative by most American leaders (because its power was limited).
The federalist objected to the Bill of Rights because they believed it gave the government enough power, but not to much to prevent tyranny.
to prevent the abuse of power by any level of government
to prevent the abuse of power by any level of government
to prevent the abuse of power by any level of government
to prevent the abuse of power by any level of government
The Federalists wanted power situated in a strong national government.
Increase: he was a Federalist
An anti-federalist did not believe in the Constitution's ratification. They thought it gave the government to much power, and needed a Bill of Rights.
If by "government" you mean "federal government" then they wanted the Congress to have the most power because it gave more power to states through direct representation. If by "government" you mean "any government in the United States", then they wanted the states to have more power, similarly to the Articles of Confederation, the States' rights movements of the 1800s, and later the Confederate States of America